1 my other half

a. the person I am married to or in a relationship with

b. the person I sit next to at work

2 half-time

a. the winning goal in a football match

b. the short rest period between the two parts of a sports game

3 a half-truth

a. a total lie that you tell in a moment of great stress

b. a fact that is intended to deceive someone because it is only partly true

4 half-board

a. a hotel room with breakfast and evening meal included in the price

b. meals that you eat at a hotel when you are not staying there

5 a half-brother

a. the son of your father's second wife or mother's second husband

b. the son of your mother's or father's brother or sister

Half a mind

What are the meanings of these phrases?

1 to be too clever by half

a. to be so confident of your own intelligence that you annoy others

b. to know a lot about one subject but not much about anything else

2 to have half heard of something

a. to have misunderstood something someone has told you

b. to have heard a few unsure details about something

3 to have half a mind to do something

a. to have made up your mind not to do something

b. to be so annoyed by something that you are thinking of doing something about it

4 to do something at half throttle

a. not to put much enthusiasm or energy into doing something

b. to try to do something but fail after several attempts

5 to be cheap at half the price

a. expensive and not worth the money

b. costing a small amount of money

Fill in the gaps ...

1 May I introduce you to ..........?

2 I've ................. of plans to build a shopping mall near where I live but I don't know any details.

3 I think we'll book .............. when we go to Shanghai.

4 Jenny is late at her desk every morning. I've ............ to tell the boss.

5 I think what the boss has told us about the company being sold is a .......... He hasn't given us all the facts because he doesn't want us to worry.

What did he mean?

What did your dad mean when he said ........?

1 It's six of one and half a dozen of the other.

a. Neither one of the two choices you have is better than the other.

b. You must not do that.

2 Half a loaf is better than none.

a. This bread really tastes good.

b. What you are being offered might be less than you want but it's better than nothing.

3 He's not half the footballer he used to be.

a. He doesn't play football as well as he used to.

b. he has never been a good footballer.

4 Use half and half.

a. Use a whole one.

b. Use equal amounts of two different things.

Answers:

I'll see you at half time: 1. a, 2. b, 3. b, 4. a, 5. a

Half a mind: 1. a, 2. b, 3. b, 4. a, 5. a

Fill in the gaps: 1. my other half / my half brother, 2. half heard, 3. half-board, 4. half a mind, 5. half-truth

What did he mean?: 1. a, 2. b, 3. a, 4. b